Tag: News

New funding has been allocated to conservation programmes protecting rare species.

Great! What’s the story?

The £14.5 million funding comes from Natural England, and is being entrusted to a number of wildlife conservation charities including the RSPB and the Wildlife Trust.

Local projects across England will receive funding so that they can work on the most important parts of their local areas – protecting everything from birds to butterflies.

Give me the specifics!

In Wiltshire, funding will go to restoring butterflies’ habitats – their numbers have been declining locally, and this boost could restore their populations. In Yorkshire, one of the priorities is using funds to protect the native white-clawed crayfish, which is suffering from diseases introduced by non-native crayfish.

It is a huge injection of cash, that will go towards incredible projects to protect our environment, restoring biodiversity across the country.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Woodland Trust. This is the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity, concerned with the creation, protection, and restoration of native woodland heritage. Support them here.

Rewilding Britain. They aim to tackle the climate emergency and extinction crisis, reconnect people with the natural world and help communities thrive. Find out more here.

Devon’s Wildlife Trust. DWT is the only local charity dedicated to protecting wildlife and wild places across Devon – on land and at sea. Learn more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land and Life Below Water.

Carnivorous plants are being reintroduced to Lancashire, in an effort to boost conservation.

Carnivorous plants?!

Yes – but they’re a bit small to be chowing down on humans so no need to worry.

Carnivorous plants existed on the Lancashire peatlands of Winmarleigh Moss as recently as 100 years ago, and are now being reintroduced thanks to the incredible work of the Lancashire Wildlife Trust.

What’s the story?

Thanks to a cash injection of £30,000, the Lancashire Wildlife Trust have been able to introduce almost 18,000 of the insect-eating plants to the peatland. 

Despite being native inhabitants of the peatland, they eventually died out thanks to misuse of the area – but now they’re able to come back and thrive like they were always supposed to.

So next time you’re in the area, take a closer look at the ground – and you might just see the incredible carnivorous greater sundew.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Woodland Trust. This is the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity, concerned with the creation, protection, and restoration of native woodland heritage. Support them here.

Rewilding Britain. They aim to tackle the climate emergency and extinction crisis, reconnect people with the natural world and help communities thrive. Find out more here.

Devon’s Wildlife Trust. DWT is the only local charity dedicated to protecting wildlife and wild places across Devon – on land and at sea. Learn more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

Pandas at Edinburgh Zoo will be travelling back to China in December 2023.

Goodbye, Pandas! Why the move?

Well, all pandas are – legally – property of China, where they originate from, and where they are seen as a national treasure. All pandas, no matter where they are, belong to the Chinese state – but sometimes they loan them to other countries and zoos.

Edinburgh Zoo was one such zoo, after passing rigorous tests, when they were able to have pandas Yang Guang and Tian Tian on loan from China.

Yang Guang and Tian Tian cost something like £750,000 a year to loan. Ouch!

So what’s the deal?

It was hoped that Yang Guang and Tian Tian would become a breeding pair – but romance wasn’t in the air for these two furry creatures. Like all great romances, Edinburgh Zoo know there’s no sense in forcing it, and so the two are returning to their native China – where one can only hope they will find their soulmates.

Alison Maclean, the carnivore team leader at Edinburgh Zoo, will be heading back to China with them to help them settle into their new homes, and set them up for their bright new future!

This isn’t the end of the road for Yang Guang and Tian Tian – they can still help their species to thrive (just maybe with someone else).

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

The Orangutan Project. This is a project run by two non-profits with one mission: to ensure the survival of all orangutan species in their natural habitat and promote the welfare of all orangutans. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

A design studio has built a Formula E racing car entirely from electronic waste.

Amazing! What’s the aim?

This extraordinary car aims to raise awareness of the importance of tackling e-waste. 

The design studio, Lazerian, built it using all kinds of materials that would otherwise have gone to landfill, donated by pupils from Manchester schools. 

It repurposes smartphones, laptops, tablets and even a Nintendo Wii controller which is used as the driving console.

“The message I want to send to people is to take some more thought and consideration over the things that we use on a day to day basis to highlight the problem that we’re in,” said its designer, Liam Hopkins. “We can recycle, reuse and make other things from them rather than just throw them away.”

The project, called Recover E (get it?), was commissioned by the British team, Envision Racing. The vehicle recreates their Gen3 vehicle, which the team describes as “the fastest, lightest, most powerful, and most efficient electric racing machines ever built.”

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Climate Coalition. This is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Find out more and support them here.

Climate Reframe.  Climate Reframe is committed to supporting the climate and environment movement in its transformation towards greater justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI). Find out more.

Trees For Cities. They are working to plant more trees within large metropolitan areas, for the betterment of people and planet. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

There’s up to £40,000 in funding available for you.

Tell me more!

As the charitable arm of The Energy Saving Trust, The Energy Saving Trust Foundation supports charities working on youth-led climate projects. With the help of Airbnb, they are relaunching their Youth Climate Fund for another year.

Organisations that are helping to facilitate youth-led climate action initiatives are able to apply for a grant of up to £40,000, which will be given out over the course of two years.

Why are they doing this?

“We want young people to feel more confident about taking action to address the climate emergency and making their voices heard,” said Jim Metcalfe, chair of the Energy Saving Trust Foundation’s board of trustees. “We encourage organisations to think creatively and embrace new approaches to make climate change relevant, accessible, and engaging to young minds.” 

Apply for the grant and view the funding criteria here.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

The Climate Coalition. This is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Find out more and support them here.

Climate Reframe.  Climate Reframe is committed to supporting the climate and environment movement in its transformation towards greater justice, equity, diversity and inclusion (JEDI). Find out more.

Trees For Cities. They are working to plant more trees within large metropolitan areas, for the betterment of people and planet. Support them here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Climate Action.

Pufflings are staging a comeback.

What?! Tell me more.

Pufflings – AKA baby puffins – are on the rebound this year, after a catastrophic 2021 breeding season left puffins in Maine thin on the ground.

Now, thankfully, the puffins are looking to be thriving thanks to a certain kind of fish – the sand lace – which is in abundance this year, and a tasty treat for little pufflings.

What else?

Fifty years ago the Audubon Society, an American non-profit organisation dedicated to the conservation of birds, helped to bring back puffins from just a few breeding pairs.

The birds now stand happily at around the 3,000 mark, and it looks like they’re going to have a great year.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.

A non-profit will be releasing 2,000 white rhinos from captivity in Africa.

Incredible! What’s the story?

African Parks is a conservation NGO that manages 22 protected areas in partnership with 12 governments across Africa. 

They recently purchased a rhino breeding farm, which currently holds 2,000 southern white rhinos in captivity. 

What’s happening now?

The plan is to reintroduce those rhinos to the wild over the course of 10 years – one of the biggest project of this kind ever undertaken in Africa. The plan is not only to free the rhinos, but also to shield them from poaching, protecting the species long term.

To learn more about the project, you can visit the African Parks website.

Charity check-in 

At Smiley Movement, we like to elevate the work of charities across the world. Here are three charities whose causes align with the themes in this article.

Four Paws UK. This charity is an animal welfare organisation, working globally to help animals in need. Learn more here.

Wildlife Justice Commission. This international foundation works to end animal trafficking around the globe. Find out more here.

Born Free. This is a wildlife conservation charity that’s passionate about wild animal welfare and Compassionate Conservation. Find out more here.

This article aligns with the UN SDG Life on Land.